Jierda Du Skölir
by wind-up-kitten
Summary: This is going to be an extremely long story, likely about the length of one of the original books. Thus, it is going to be a year in the making. This is intended to be a complete conclusion to the Inheritance cycle, explaining what became of all the major characters in the 1000 years following Eragon's exile. Spoilers and possibly some adult scenes later on. Rating may change.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note**

*****SPOILERS AHEAD*****

**This is going to be an extremely long story, likely about the length of one of the original books. Thus, it is going to be quite a long time before it is completed. This is intended to be a complete conclusion to the Inheritance cycle. If there are any errors, or things from the original books that should be addressed, notify me as soon as you see them. This story begins 900 years after Eragon leaves Algaësia, and will seek to fill in the gaps in the original four books. The target date for finishing this story is May 2017, and I'll try and do at least one chapter a week. Thank you for reading!**

**Pronunciations in this chapter:**

**Vrangr - Verr-awng-er**  
**Ytirrivard - Tier-iv-ard**  
**Arya - Arr-yuh**  
**Eragon - Air-uh-gone**  
**Illvindr - Eel-vin-dur**  
**Fiérdauth - Fear-doth**

_Italic is either a character thinking to themselves or to another, mentally._

**Bold is an author's note.**

Regular text is-well-regular text.

Chapter 1 - Du Islingr

Eragon sat, cross legged and perfectly balanced, upon a knurled stump. The forest around him thrummed with activity, the massive trees sentinels of the creatures within, but Eragon paid heed to none of them. A spear of his consciousness probed, searching leagues upon leagues of barren, scorched earth, searching for one single entity. Eragon's brow furrowed as he extended the range of his thoughts further than any magician, of this or any age, could have done before. He touched a handful of minds as he combed the land, mostly animals that had survived, birds, squirrels. On occasion he would find a human or a dwarf, always hard at work, trying to survive, but these contacts were few and usually amounted to nothing.

_ Seven years I have searched and seven more I will continue_-Eragon stopped his thought and his eyes flew open as he found another consciousness, too old and too wise to be a human or a dwarf. He roared mentally as he pushed his full power into establishing a connection between himself and this stranger, and found himself facing a closed mind, surrounded by an unmovable iron wall. Not wasting any time, Eragon focused his entire being into a blade of mental energy and dismantled his opponent's defense. He panted with effort as this distant magician fought back. The moment the walls had been pushed aside, he recognized the music of her mind, the landscape of her consciousness. A tear ran down his face. Suffusing his voice with magic, he screamed across the link. _Arya!_ A response came as a series of raw emotions. Loss, wonder, rage. Eragon was overwhelmed by the forcefulness of her response, falling to the ground against the stump.

_ Nine hundred years is no small time, Eragon. Even for an elf._ Her voice, Eragon thought, was filled with loss. The confident young woman he had known was hidden from him, covered by the tone of a wanderer who has seen too much in her long life.

_Aye._ Eragon responded. His energy growing short, he cast about for his sword and drew some power from the vast reserves in the hilt in order to maintain the connection. Using magic across a single league is difficult, using it across five thousand leagues was by all rights impossible.

_Not a word, after all this time, and all you can manage is 'Aye'?_ Eragon sensed her laughing. _You don't change, Eragon. The world we once knew is gone, but you are still the boy-the man I fought alongside._

Eragon hesitated, not wanting to mar the occasion. _That I am, and I believe it is time for us to fight again._ Was his simple reply. _Were you successful? In your preparations, I mean._ Eragon had been unable to make contact with Arya until now, but he had scryed her many times and knew of her endeavors.

_I was. And I intend to depart for Ytirrivard at dawn._ Eragon frowned. Ytirrivard was part of the holdings of Elva, his adopted daughter. He wondered briefly why Arya intended to visit Elva, but dispelled the thought. The reason did not matter, he was sure Arya would tell him in due time.

_ If it is acceptable, I would accompany you._ Eragon winced. He was taking a chance, hoping that Arya could forgive him for his silence.

She sensed his strife and spoke in a kind tone. _Eragon, the past is the past. I would be glad to have you as company._

Eragon exhaled, realizing he had been holding his breath for several minutes. _Will you be going directly to Illvindr?_ Illvindr was the capitol of Ytirrivard, the city of gold Elva had built in a fey rage of magical insanity.

_ I will. I must leave you, Eragon, but I will see you three in three sunrises at the gates of Illvindr. Fair travels._ She closed the link, and Eragon made no move to stop her. He was already darting about the clearing, his movements fast and fluid, collecting his few belongings. He donned his traveling cloak, strapped on the Belt of Beloth the Wise, and slid Vrangr and Brisingr, his twin swords, into their sheaths across his back. He glanced at his armor, wrought for him by the forest imps of Flérdauth, seemingly aqueous metal that shined with the light of the morning star. He muttered a word in the Ancient Language and the armor seemed to melt, shrinking until it was a small sphere of metallic light. Eragon picked it up and placed it in his pack.

Finally, he walked to one of the massive trees surrounding the clearing and began to sing, a song of peace and concealment. After several minutes, the wood of the tree began to slide and change, patterns appearing in the wood, then wiring to cover an area slightly larger than Eragon's hand. He placed his hand upon the tree and pulled. Bark fell away from the patch he had sung from the tree to reveal a mask, half white and half black, perfectly fitted to his face, with Eragon's swirling flame insignia on the brow. He thanked the tree and placed the mask on his face. He swept his gaze over the small patch of forest that had been his home for the last years, then turned his back and walked to the cliff , on the side opposite the edge of the forest. Eragon felt a tenuous mental contact, as if something far below him was stirring from a long sleep. Nodding, he knelt down and jumped, rocks cracking under his heels as he jumped higher than any man, elf, or other being could muster.

He almost flew through the air, soaring upwards, until he reached the peak of his jump and began to plummet towards the ground. As he fell through the clouds hiding his view of the valley below, a part of the cliff seemed to break off and begin moving towards him. As the shape moved nearer, coming into focus, Eragon saw the enormous wings and gargantuan body of the partner of his heart and mind. She rolled with an agility that seemed impossible for a creature of her size, flipping upside down and catching Eragon between two of her hulking talons. She rolled again, righting herself, and Eragon ran, using the force of her spin to run upside down until he was on her long, bristling neck, just behind her skull.

_Hello, little one. _

_ Hello, Saphira._

They flew in silence for several minutes, the ground whipping by in a blur, until Saphira neared the edge of the island. Eragon began to speak in the Ancient Language, amending the wards he had placed so many years earlier to allow himself and Saphira to leave without harm. When he was done, Saphira spoke. _Something is troubling you, Eragon._

_I haven't so much as spoken to Arya since I left Algaësia. I wonder if she will be the same person I left._ Saphira snorted at this, smoke curling from her nostrils and flying back into Eragon's face. He coughed.

_What was that for?_ Eragon asked, indignant.

_You must learn to see what you are looking at._ Saphira recited their mantra. Eragon rolled his eyes. _Arya cares for you, and she knows that what you did was necessary. Do not trouble yourself to think about it overmuch. She has forgiven you. Would you reject that forgiveness?_ Eragon sighed.

_You are right, as always_. Saphira hummed, the deep sound reverberating through her body as her wingbeats kept a steady rhythm. _Saphira?_

_Yes, little one?_ Saphira turned her head slightly, fixing her pond-sized eye, icy blue, on him.

Shall we dance with the stars? Eragon asked, sending her mental images of flying high above the land, the curvature of the earth they had seen, spent so long studying. Images of the star dragons they had seen wrapping themselves around the heavens, breathing tongues of flame, uncaring, cold to what was happening below them. He and Saphira had spend innumerable days high above Algaësia, Ytirrivard, and Naraveth, observing the magical creatures there, mapping places unknown.

They had also been given a secret, given to them by the king of the star dragons. He taught them to change light into energy, a secret Eragon and Saphira had sworn in the most ancient of languages never to share. Now Eragon harnessed this power, invoked it to take the light of the stars and weave it into a spell of his own creation. The wording was complicated, but Eragon cast it with the tongue of a practiced magician. He first created a space around Saphira full of air. This space was connected to a point below them, which took air from below them near the ground and funneled it to them as they climbed higher. Next, he bent the sunlight near them and changed it, turning it into heat. The sky was cold, and without this they would freeze to death. Finally, he shaped the air currents around them to push them high into the sky, far faster than Saphira could with her wings alone.

His spell finished, Eragon stood and walked up Saphira's neck, as thick as ten trees together, and stood atop her head. He surveyed the retreating features of the land. Naraveth fell away behind him, Algaësia and Ytirrivard looming on the distant horizon. The sea between appeared peaceful, all shades of blue mixing together for a thousand leagues. Still Eragon and Saphira rocketed skyward. After several minutes they had climbed so high that Eragon could see the entire world below him, an orb floating in the emptiness. Eragon stopped the spell pushing them higher, and Saphira started pushing forward.

_Flying is easier up here._ Saphira spoke to his mind. _Hold on!_ She tucked her wings in, falling like a meteor towards the ocean. She pulled up, flaring her great wings, she flapped hard, soaring up to her initial height. She continued upwards, then tucked her wings again, rolling in an acrobatic twisting backflip. as she reached the bottom of the loop, she bugled and let out a sheet of flame. The column was wide enough that, had a castle been in front of her, it would have been completely incinerated. Even in their protective bubble, Eragon felt the heat. He turned away and shielded his face with his cloak. As he turned, his gaze was captured by a dark shadow on the edge of the world. Eragon and Saphira had never explored that area before, encountering only ocean as far as they could comfortably fly.

_Saphira, that looks like smoke! What do you see?_ Saphira turned midair, hovering in place to obtain a better view of the shadow.

_I see smoke, much of it if we can see it from this high. I also see-_she stopped as a sheet of flame, impossibly large, ripped through the cloud of smoke, dispelling it as if it had never existed._ I see a monster._ Fear laced her voice as Eragon saw what she spoke of. _There, on the horizon, further than Eragon and Saphira had ever explored, walked a shining beast of immense proportions. Its speckled head reached above the clouds, its tusks as long as a mountain. Eragon stared in disbelief._

_How can a creature so large exist and yet have hidden itself from me? Even as they watched, a gout of flame ripped from its maw, leveling a mountain. That peak was bigger than some in the Beors! It would take even me an immense amount of effort to destroy a mountain like that!_

_ It seems to be flightless._ Saphira noted. She seemed pleased. _It looks like a good challenge, but for now we need to get to Ytirrivard and see Arya and-_

_My daughter._ Eragon finished, smiling. He was excited at the prospect of seeing Elva, he wondered how much she had improved at mastering her ability. Elva was his ward, and one of the only people he still had contact with after his self-imposed exile. He loved teaching her, she was fast as a whip and extremely powerful, and she and Eragon had been close as long as he could remember. On the other hand, Elva resented the fact that she was not a rider, for the dragons refused to bind with her, and thus on lower standing than Eragon and Murtagh, and she was somewhat unstable, her rage dangerous and unpredictable. Despite this, Eragon loved her as his own and visited her whenever he could. Arya visited Elva as well, though never at the same time as Eragon, and far less frequently, but Elva always told him of her visits in an excited, fervent tone.

_Yes, your daughter._ Saphira hummed. Elva looked forward to Saphira's visiting almost more than she did Eragon's. She loved the dragon, and was always happy to see her. Saphira returned the feelings warmly. _Now get some sleep, little one. We have many hours of flying ahead and you need to be well rested._

Eragon nodded, then jumped from Saphira's head, flipping in midair, and landed in the saddle on her back. He had given up trying to make a saddle that encompassed Saphira's enormous girth and instead set up a saddle suspended between two of her tree-sized spines. He tied himself in so he would not fall off in his sleep, then drifted off into his waking dreams.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**  
**Thank you for everyone reading! There was a question over when new chapters will be published. There will be one every week on Sunday (USA Mountain Time, sorry NZ residents) and any extra chapters I write before then will be published as soon as they are written. Once again, any comments, questions, or observations are welcomed and appreciated!**

_Italic is a character thinking to themselves, or talking to another mentally._

Regular text is regular text

**Bold is an author's note**

Chapter 2

_Wake up, little one_. Eragon shifted. _Eragon!_ His head jerked up, the momentary confusion that comes with awaking on the back of a dragon falling away quickly. He unlaced the bindings on Saphira's saddle and slid down to land on her back. He looked down, past Saphira's sail-like leathery wings, to the city of Illvindr.

_You flew fast last night_. Eragon praised her.

_You slept long the last two nights_. Saphira responded, her rumbling laugh sounding deep in her chest. _All that meditation made you sleepy_.

_But are you not glad It did?_

_I am._

Eragon, on a sudden whim, sprinted full speed across Saphira's back and leapt off. He streamlined his body to fall faster, air rushing past. _Why not?_ He thought, and cast a spell to ignite the air around his body, becoming a falling star hurtling towards the golden city below. Saphira followed suit, folding her wings and diving full speed towards the ground. She breathed a plume of flame, her speed making the blue inferno stream behind her, mimicking the appearance of Eragon's spell. Twin meteors, they plunged towards the massive city of marble and gold. Seconds before they hit the ground, Eragon cast a spell to send himself rocketing horizontally towards the palace in the city center. Saphira flared her wings, her tendons popping with the strain of overcoming the inertia of her massive frame, and followed Eragon. The few inhabitants of Illvindr looked up from the streets. All had seen Eragon and Saphira before, and they were accustomed to their explosive entrances, but they still looked up in wonder and waved, cheering.

Eragon cut the energy to his spells above the courtyard, and landed with a crunch on the flagstones. Seconds later, Saphira landed behind him, the ground cracking under her thousand-weight paws. Eragon looked about the courtyard. The cherry trees were in full bloom and the area buzzed with activity. Insects hovered over the flowers, birds darted about above, trying to attract a mate. Squirrels chased each other up and down the trees, their chattering voices ringing through the garden. He reached up to remove his mask, pushing it into his pack. As he extended his mental probe to check the city for any signs of enemies, he found himself besieged by a dark, glittering intelligence. Saphira growled, telling Eragon that she, too, was being attacked. The attacker held him for a moment, then spoke into his mind. _Eragon!_ Elva's steely grip loosened, then disappeared. Moments later, the doors in front of the palace across the courtyard opened. Eragon watched as a young woman, dressed in black, stepped out, then closed the door softly behind her. Her raven hair rippled over her extraordinarily pale shoulders and flared out behind her, following the contours of her cloak as she stepped carefully down the stairs. Eragon waited until she had reached the bottom before stepping forward to embrace her.

"It has been a while, Eragon. I thought you'd forgotten about me." A corner of her mouth twitched playfully as she drew back and faced Saphira. "Fare thee well, Saphira? Still growing, I see."

_Very well, Elva._ Saphira dipped her head, touching the tip of her nose to the Gëdwey Ingasia on her forehead. Elva shivered, then smiled, her eyes sparkling. _Has Arya arrived yet?_ Elva tilted her head in confusion.

"Arya told me not of her intentions to visit. Has she contacted you?"

"I found her, two days past, while probing Algaësia. She told me she was traveling to Illvindr to speak to you." Eragon gestured. "I assumed she had alerted you to her plans."

"No, she has not, but it is no matter. Let us go inside. The sun does not treat me well." She turned to walk up the stairs, and Eragon stepped to follow her.

_I will meet you inside._ Said Saphira, and with an ear-shattering flap took off, looping above the palace to land in the center, the only place large enough for Saphira to stand.

"Saphira has grown still since I last saw her." Elva commented. "Do you think she will ever stop growing? Soon enough she will be too large to fit in the hold."

Eragon shrugged. "She is as tall as fifty men, we have seen beasts in the wild far larger. I would not expect her to stop growing any time soon." He chuckled. "Her hunting trips take many weeks now, though. She has to roam far to find enough food to fill her stomach." They reached the top of the stairs and Eragon opened the door for his daughter. She bowed her head and entered, and Eragon followed her. After passing a short hallway they came out into a great hall, hundreds of feet tall and ornamented with banners bearing Elva's mark; a cherry tree with a white dragon wrapped around it.

The gate at the opposite side of the hall opened, and Saphira lumbered through. Her steps shook the pillars, and Eragon and Elva waited until she had reached them to resume the conversation.

Elva spoke, "Would you like something to drink, something to eat, Eragon? You have traveled a long way."

"Some cold water would be excellent." Said Eragon.

_And for me as well._ Interjected Saphira. At this, Elva laughed, a tinkling, musical sound, and pointed to a pool at the rear of the hall. Eragon braced himself just as Saphira bent down and jumped, a single bound clearing the room. She landed beside the pool and bent her front legs, then dipped her head and began to drink, her massive tongue pulling gallons of water into her gaping maw.

Eragon turned, taking a glass of water Elva had produced seemingly from nothing. "Thank you." He said, then drank. Elva waited patiently until they had both had their fill, then sat down. Eragon followed suit, taking a cross-legged pose on the wooden floor, and Saphira, after jumping back over to them, curled herself in a protective ring around Eragon and Elva.

"Did Arya give any hint to the reason for her visit?" Elva asked.

"No, although I have my suspicions. She has been searching for something the last century, sometimes more fervent than others, but I believe whatever it is, she has found it." Eragon had no idea what she had been looking for. He could only assume it was something precious to her, something-or someone- that had been lost, but he could not fathom why she would devote so much time to her search. "From what she told me, she should arrive here tomorrow at dawn, so I can assume we will find out then."

Did you tell Elva of what we saw, before you put yourself into a coma? Elva looked at Eragon, her almond-shaped violet eyes boring into his, expecting a story. Despite Elva's age, power, and experience, she still loved hearing Eragon's stories.

"We saw-" Eragon gave up, the creature was indescribable, and instead spoke with his mind, showing Elva images of the beast they had seen, far off in the distance, incomprehensibly large. He showed her how its red flame had leveled a mountain, how its head pierced the clouds. Elva gasped audibly and showed Eragon something in return. The beast Eragon and Saphira had seen was silver, metallic. The one Elva was showing them now was jet-black. Its other features were identical, they looked like two sides of a coin. _I was on my way to consult with the Nïdwhalar, I was in the deepest part of the ocean, between here and Algaësia. I saw that monster digging in the sea. I was much closer than you were to the second one, but I was afraid. I did not go closer. At my guess it was a league or more high._ She showed them more images, the monster breathing a gout of magma, melting through the rock. Its tusks eviscerating the masts of sunken ships.

"Wait! What was that?" Eragon shouted out loud.

"What was what?" Elva looked perplexed.

_Something was floating near the beast. It appeared to be a man or an elf._ Saphira interjected. _Is it possible someone, or something, is controlling them?_

Elva's eyes widened. "That would mean an extremely powerful magician is out there-one neither of us knows about." Eragon frowned.

"I have not been keeping watch as I should. If I had searched more completely we would have know of this long ago."

"Don't trouble yourself, Eragon. We had no indication anything was going on, and if we had it's not likely we could have found this sorcerer anyway. If they are powerful enough to control one of those monsters it's also likely they are skilled at hiding themselves."

"That's true but I still feel like I've failed." Elva scooted closer to him,  
leaning her head on his shoulder.

"There was no way you could have known. Don't worry about it. Just wait until Arya arrives and we'll discuss what to do." She closed her eyes, the flash of purple disappearing behind her smoky eyelids. She curled up against her adoptive father's strong frame and slept. Eragon stared at the ceiling, thinking.

_If I had just been more vigilant, I could have stopped this earlier._

_Eragon, if you would be so kind, I am trying to sleep._ The chime of Elva's voice cut through his thought.

_My apologies, my lady._ Elva's lips twitched ever so slightly, and Eragon settled down into a comfortable position against the sleeping Saphira, making sure not to disturb the frail, beautiful girl in his arms, and drifted off into sleep.

The roar of a dragon woke the three of them, Eragon and Saphira jumping up with a start, Elva yawning blearily and rubbing her eyes. The pounding of wingbeats caused pressure spikes to stab into their ears. Elva groaned and angrily screamed a spell. the pressure on their ears ceasing immediately. Eragon vaulted onto Saphira's back, pulling his mask over his face, and she leapt immediately into the sky, winging towards the noise, the other dragon a shape on the horizon. As they drew closer, the glimmer of green scales came into focus. Saphira snorted, redoubling her speed. She waited until they were close enough to the green dragon to see the two people on his back before bellowing and pulling in a loop around him, spraying flames into the sky. Fírnen responded with a roar, deeper than Saphira's, although he refrained from performing any acrobatics.

The two dragons flew together, their minds closed off from Eragon, although he could tell they were having an avid conversation. Eragon, too, closed his mind to intrusions, waiting until they had landed, with the scraping and thudding that comes of a duo of dragons. Eragon dismounted, as did the two masked and cloaked figures on Fírnen's back. They both removed their masks, as did Eragon, revealed their faces. Arya and Angela stood before him, both appeared the same as when he had last seen them, so long ago. Arya turned towards Fírnen and whispered something. A moment later he and Saphira jumped into the air, flying towards the mountain on the south of the city.

"Eragon-" Arya managed before he had closed the distance between them and pulled her into a tight embrace.

"It has been far too long. I cannot apologize enough for leaving you." Eragon whispered into her shoulder. Arya pulled away and held him by the hands, arms outstretched.

"I shall love you, Eragon, until the stars are snuffed out, the land we walk has vanished, until I cease to draw breath. I forgive you." A single tear rolled down her cheek. She brushed it away, then turned to Elva. "Fare thee well, my child?"

"I do, as does Ytirrivard." She responded, breaking into a smile. "It appears we have much to talk about. Let us go inside." Arya took Eragon's hand and followed Elva inside, Angela trailing somewhat uncomfortably behind.

They entered the door to the crashing sound of Fírnen and Saphira sparring in the great hall.

_Stop that!_ Elva chided them. The two behemoths calmed down immediately and joined the party as they sat at the long table at the front of the hall. Elva conjured small pastries, setting them down magically in front of her guests.

"So." Said Angela.

"So." Replied Eragon, in the same somewhat testy tone.

"You absolute pigheaded, overconfident, uncaring-" Eragon bowed his head as Angela continued her tirade, which lasted for several minutes and included her usual colorful vocabulary, several suggestions that his ancestors had been farm animals, and a verbal beating over the way he had left.

"I quite agree. My behavior has been inexcusable." He said. Angela's eyebrows furrowed.

"You're damned right it was." She continued to glare at him until Arya spoke.

"Before I tell you of my travels and discoveries, of which I have had many, tell me, Eragon: what is it that you have been trying to do? After the second fall I lost track of you. I would like to hear what has since transpired." She said.

_What you ask is a very long story._ Saphira interjected. _I would assist Eragon in telling his tale. Saphira included all present in her thoughts._

_I would expect nothing else._ Angela cut in. Now tell us, Eragon. _Why did you abandon Algaësia, even when it needed you most?_

_Let me start at the beginning. When we left on the Talíta with Blödhgarm and the other elves. Much of this story you may know, but some you may not, and all is important._

_The ship sailed onward, gliding serenely down the moonlit river toward the dark lands beyond. We sailed for several weeks until we reached the land we named Fíerdauth. It was wild, full of creatures we had not seen. Imps inhabited the forests, and they were friendly and highly intelligent. There, we built the city of Yggdrasil. _

_It was similar, in many ways, to Ellesméra._ Saphira interjected.

_Eragon continued. After we built the city, we kept exploring the immediate area and found it to be an island. It was suitable, we thought, for raising the next riders and, as you recall, I contacted you to tell you so. For the next years, we waited for the next riders to come across the sea. We did not wait idly, however. The elves and I continued to practice our magic, we explored the land around us, and most importantly, we searched. Many things we still lacked, Brightsteel among them. We needed the ability to forge more swords for the riders. Finding none on land, we were close to giving up the search in favor of a different weapon. Four years after we landed at Fíerdauth, four years of exploring the land and the sky as is our custom, Saphira and I found the Nascents._

_Nascents?_ Asked Angela. _I have heard tell of them from the deepest, darkest beasts of the earth. What manner of creature are they?_

_They are ethereal forms, ancient and wise. Far above us, in the realm of the stars, a thousand leagues in the air, they live. Their knowledge is immense, and their power greater. If they wished it, they could wipe out our world in the blink of an eye. They prefer, however, to sleep in their eternal rest. We met with these beings and they shared with us many secrets, hidden from us for millennia._

_Secrets such as?_ Asked Arya.

_The nature of them I will not say, the danger is too great. Suffice to say that there are now very few things I do not know about magic. After we met with the Nascents, Saphira and I noticed many meteors floating, in the space around our world. We took several of these and brought them to Yggdrasil with us, in hopes that they would yield us Brightsteel. They did, and we were able to forge swords for the riders that would come. Several years passed, and the first of the new riders came to Fíerdauth, a dwarf woman, as I am sure you recall. For the next two hundred years we trained her and those who came after. During that time, we rebuilt the leadership of the Riders, keeping always the most skilled of each race in Algaësia to ensure the safety of the land. Eventually, though, we grew tired of training more and more riders, with no enemy in sight to necessitate their training. I used one of the spells I had worked on for the years since our exodus to teleport all the remaining dragon eggs to Yggdrasil. There, I placed them in an underground chamber, protected by vast magical defenses, where they remain still today_. Arya nodded. _Eragon had worked with her to ensure the success of this plan. That was around the time one of our riders went rogue. A human, as it always seems to be._

_Rivend._ Elva shuddered. He had been one of her close friends, and though she had never told Eragon the full story of their relationship he suspected that she had cared for him more than she let on.

_He began eliminating the less experienced riders, keeping his identity secret. I assumed the Ra'zac were behind the attacks at first. I had grown soft, less watchful, in the long peace. It was not until I heard tales of a black-and-white dragon terrorizing villages that I realized what was happening, and then I was powerless to stop it. I watched from afar as he tore down all that we had worked to achieve. I was furious, and in my anger I lashed out. My mind was powerful, and I attacked him ruthlessly across the massive space between us. My age and practice allowed me to subdue him, and just as I had overcome his wards he cast a spell. Waíse néiat. The most simple and most dangerous of spells. He consumed the full energy of himself, his dragon, and the seven Eldunarí entrusted to him. I was powerless to stop him. _

Fírnen twitched his tail. _The oath-breaker ravaged Algaësia and turned it into a wasteland._ Saphira growled and nuzzled his neck.

_Aye._ Thought Eragon. _That he did. Thankfully most of the elves and many of the dwarves were able to withstand the blast, despite the deaths of almost all of the human race. In any case, Saphira and I retreated into hiding, resolving never to train a new rider. Twice the riders had fallen and twice they had been brought down from within, each time with disastrous consequences for all. From that point there were five riders still alive: myself, Arya, Murtagh, Crívae, and Yensa. Elva fidgeted and Eragon paused for a moment. Yensa and Crívae flew to the north. They told me they wished to establish a stronghold. I have not heard from them since that time, and I can only assume they are lost to us. For centuries, Saphira and I endured, living in the forest, devising new ways to use magic. But mostly we meditated, and we searched for a way to rebuild the world to what it had once been. And we realized that Algaësia had never been a land of happiness. There had always been some strife or evil that plagued it. It was then that we decided never to return, regardless of the circumstance. We began to seek out other lands, leaving Fíerdauth for months, years, at a time to search for another land that would sustain the races of Algaësia, for they fared badly. We found this, Ytirrivard, and I contacted Elva, the only one I had maintained communication with during my exile. She agreed to come, and in a few months she had arrived and we began to discuss what to do. While we were here, I adopted Elva as my daughter and began to train her in the art of spell-casting._

_That explains quite a bit, actually._ Angela huffed.

_Elva, may I tell them the story of how Illvindr was built?_ Eragon inquired.

_You may._

_During Elva's training, quite early on, we realized she was extremely adept, but also prone to fits of magical rage. During these fits she had, it seemed to Saphira and I, limitless energy, but no control over it. Several years into her training, one of these fits occurred. Saphira sensed the signs that I missed, and as I watched she snatched me into the air as Elva's body burst into golden flame. She floated, several feet off the ground, flames that would make any dragon's breath look like a tiny candle forming a huge halo around her body. For several minutes, this ball of fire grew, leveling plants, hills, all in sight. I tried to suppress her, but I could not touch her mind. Her madness grew, and the fires turned to a shimmering purple and black, then the ground began to break apart. Cracks formed, and out of the cracks flew hundreds of tons of rock and magma. Saphira and I watched, helpless, as the rock formed a ring around Elva, then she seemed to awaken from her rage and it all crashed to the ground. As it did, Elva harnessed the heat energy from the magma and used it to turn the minerals to gold and marble. Finally, she shaped the mixture into the shape of buildings as it solidified. _

_And that is the story of how I built a city in my sleep._ Said Elva, smiling meekly.

_Most interesting._ Angela put in. _I'd like to know where that power came from, though._

_After Elva built Illvindr, I was notified by Blödhgarm that they had found a cave deep inside a mountain containing several spirits. I left Elva with the promise that I would return soon. When Saphira and I arrived we found many angry spirits on Fíerdauth. Blödhgarm was dead, as were most of the other elves who had been my companions for the last centuries. I was angry beyond reason, and I went to what appeared to be the leader of these spirits with the intent of destroying it. It spoke to me, and it seemed sad. It talked of a world where evil had been eradicated. A world where all is just and fair and all are kind. It finished showing me its vision and flew into me-it seemed to disappear but I sometimes still feel it with me. In any case, I searched for other spirits after that day but I have never found another. They seem to have vanished completely. Many years later, I realized what the spirits were._

_The gray folk._ Arya's thoughts were a mere whisper.

_The gray folk, yes. The messengers of the Nascents that brought magic to the world. What they wanted, what they did, is still a mystery to me, but they are no more, and I believe they passed on their wishes to us-to me. This was a fairly short time ago, barely over a century. Since then I have led a simple life, devoting myself to searching as far as my mind can reach for anyone and anything. I have visited Elva, cataloged every animal in ten thousand leagues, searched the bottoms of the oceans for any clues that would allow me to dispel the poison from Algaësia, but to no avail. And now we are here, reunited at last._

Eragon finished, yawning. Saphira and Fírnen stood, blinking. They had been curled up together on the stones. Angela looked up, her green eyes met Eragon's with a piercing intensity. Arya sniffed, drawing her cloak about herself. Elva simply sat, unmoving. For the first time since his arrival, Eragon allowed his mind to wander, a brief scan of the surrounding area. Something caught his attention, a stormy presence, intangible, and he narrowed his eyes, looking at the back of Elva's raven head, then at the perfectly draped curtains behind her. They were a glittering purple, flecked with black and white spots. Without warning, Eragon cried, "Rísa!", and the curtains lifted. Elva whirled into action as a gout of roaring purple flames sprayed into the daytime sky, her sad, almost apologetic gaze meeting Eragon's as her form shimmered, then disappeared.

**This has been an insanely long chapter. I've only just started to scratch the surface of the newly developing plot as well as starting to catch you all up on what's been going on since Galbatorix went down. Is Elva evil? Is Algaësia doomed? Who knows? (I do, of course, but you know what I mean). There will be a regular chapter released on Sunday, but I'm going camping this weekend and It'll probably be fairly short and sweet. Hence wanting to get this one out before Ieave so all you lovlies have something to read until then. Once again, any commentary, questions (I'll try not to answer any questions if the answer would spoil the plot), or corrections to any mistakes I've made are much appreciated. Thank you for reading! **

**-Wyrda**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:**  
**Thank you for everyone reading! There was a question over when new chapters will be published. There will be one every week on Sunday (USA Mountain Time, sorry NZ residents) and any extra chapters I write before then will be published as soon as they are written. Once again, any comments, questions, or observations are welcomed and appreciated! Since the chapter I published on Friday came out early and I spent a ton (like a ton) of time on it, I decided to keep my deadline but write a much shorter chapter, this time from Elva's point of view, including a flashback to start explaining the (not small) part she played in this great saga. **

_Italic is a character thinking to themselves, or talking to another mentally._

Regular text is regular text

**Bold is an author's note**

Chapter 3 - Elva

After Eragon had finished his tale, Elva sat still at the table, looking at the beautiful purple wings of Vórya behind her. She sensed his mind beginning to wander, probe about the area for anything amiss. Trying not to make any outward motion, she cast a quick enchantment to allow her mind to pass unseen, then surrounded Vórya's sleeping consciousness with her own, hiding it. _Too late. _Elva moved, slipping unconsciously between the form of a human and that of a shadow. _Not fast enough. _Eragon opened his mouth to shout a spell just as Elva slid under the table and stood in front of him, moving to clap her hand over his mouth.

"Risa!" His lips moved the same instant Elva took a step toward him. She drew back, her eyes widened, her eyebrows furrowing in a look of pain and sorrow. Behind her, Vórya had roared into action, the juggernaut of a dragon thrashing about, tearing down pillars. Heat suffused from the columns of flame pouring from her maw. Eragon's cold blue gaze met her blazing purple for a split instant before Elva drew her cloak around her thin frame and, spinning, disappeared into nothing.

_Gánga! _Elva screamed in her mind at the crazed dragon. It did not respond, but it seemed to understand. It whirled, spinning about the great hall, crushing all in sight. Elva did not look back as she jumped onto the great dragon's back, hanging onto an amethyst spine . _Please, don't die. Eragon. Arya. Angela. _She shielded her face with one hand as an enormous explosion ripped her home apart. In the middle of the crater formed by the blast she saw the outlines of several blurry shapes along with the other two dragons. Despite the ever-increasing distance, she locked eyes with Arya, who tilted her head, then put three fingers to her lips and knelt, bowing her head. Elva's breath caught in her throat and tears filled her eyes. She turned away, eyes burning, hugging onto the purple dragon's back as she flew on, silent, towards the descending sun.

_Elva stepped out of the cloud of smoke, the only indication she had appeared where she had not been before, into a thick jungle. Crows covered the trees, deafening her with their incessant noise. Her eyes flashed, a wispy purple smoke streaming from her eyes and dissipating above her gilded head. She screamed, a primal sound, driven by pure emotion. The birds evacuated their perches at once, desperate to escape from the mad, grief-stricken creature among them. Elva fell to her knees, her torn dress billowing behind her. Water dripped from the evergreens, a steady drip that did nothing to calm her nerves. She reached up, pulling the simple silver and amethyst diadem she had worn from her hair with an angry tug. She threw it aside, her latent magic pulsing through her arm, making it snap straight in a blur. The diadem shattered against a moss-covered rock. Elva fell back on her heels, staring up to the sky in an expression of utter hopelessness. And now the tears fell, hot and thick, on the bed of pine needles. She remained so, mourning what had been, for several minutes, before brushing away the wetness on her cheeks with the dirty sleeve of her dress. The contrast of the dirt against her almost-translucent skin gave her a look of one drowning in an unfamiliar land. She stood, her already torn dress shredding itself against a rock. She slowly pulled her unruly hair over one shoulder and reached behind her back, unlacing the dress, then allowing it to drop on the ground. She stepped out of the pile of fabric, walking deeper into the trees, propelled by some unknown intuition. She walked for several minutes, her face down-turned, contemplating the patterns the needles made on the rocks with an extraordinary emptiness of mind. The forest seemed to continue in a similar fashion forever, tall pine trees and scattered rocks filling the landscape. A single rock pile several hundred feet ahead of Elva was the only unique feature, and she angled that direction in hopes of finding something, anything. As she walked closer, her anguish increased at her lack of discovery. A scowl came over her face and purple streams of smoke began once again to trickle from her eyes, giving her the look of an unearthly wolf demon stalking through the trees. The air around her hands shimmered, streaked through with a violet and black energy. The crackling spread through the air, wrapping itself around her bare body until she appeared to be sheathed in indistinct sparks. She continued towards the rock pile, her mind almost completely gone, staggering forward on instinct alone. She weaved her way between and over the rocks, her touch shattering them, sending deadly spikes of rock hurtling through the air. As she drew closer to the peak, storm clouds began to gather above, a spinning maelstrom of lightning and driving rain. Elva cleared the final few feet, then collapsed with a crunch on the stone slab that crowned the small hill of fallen rocks. The halo of energy around her grew in size, illuminating the darkening field. Raindrops splashed on the stones, Elva's electric aura jumping between them. She breathed in heavily, then screamed once more. A more terrible sound had never been heard. Her wail seemed to cut the fabric of the world, sending spirits and beasts pouring through. Elva clutched her head, throbbing in pain, and curled up on the stone slab. A single tear slid down her cheek, and time seemed to pause. The instant the tiny drop touched the surface of the rocky disk, a surge of power leapt from Elva's back into the sky, a bolt arcing out of the storm clouds to meet it halfway. A crack sounded as the cascade of electricity struck the ground, blinding Elva and cracking the stone. A shower of pebbles pinged off the larger boulders, the sound multiplied a thousandfold, and Elva continued holding her head until the noise had subsided. The aura of power around her was gone, stripped away by nature's wrath meeting her own. She shivered, then blinked and sat. The power of the bolt striking so close to her had thrown her back several feet, away from the peak of the rock pile. Breathing heavily from the gargantuan amount of energy she had expended, she pulled her weary, emaciated frame into a standing position against the boulder that blocked her view. Pausing for a moment, she surveyed herself for major injuries. A small line of blood leaked from her exposed hip, and a bruise was forming on her breast where she had bounced against a rock, but she was otherwise unharmed. Leaning heavily on the rock, she limped into view of the cracked circle of rock and gasped audibly. In the exact spot the bolt had struck sat an egg, royal purple and veined with black and white. She knelt beside the dragon egg carefully, then reached with one finger to touch its smooth warm surface. As she grazed it, the Gëdwey Ignasia on her forehead burned, and she could feel it changing. Elva laid down, wrapping herself around the egg. She breathed in, then out, and the world was no more._

A smile came to Elva's face as she remembered. Rivend had torn apart Algaësia, and she was being hunted by the magicians on account of their friendship. The magicians were not the real problem. She could have destroyed them all a thousand times over, but she could not travel safely among the people of Algaësia for fear of recognition, and she refused to take lives unless it was absolutely necessary. If not for the arrival of Vórya, she would have gone mad, taken by her feeling of hopelessness. She patted the dragon, who snorted in response. A series of images flashed through Elva's head, Vórya as a hatchling, flying for the first time, Elva's bloodied thighs, Elva's confusion when she realized Vórya could understand speech but could not speak herself. Elva grinned, shaking her head. _Those days are long gone. You are much too big for me to wrap my legs all the way around you! _The dragon replied with an image of a sapling growing next to a massive oak tree. _Exactly. We should land soon. The nïdwhalar will protect us while we rest._ The sound of folding wings told Elva that the dragon was in agreement, and several seconds later Vórya's gilded paws hit the water, slowing her considerable momentum until she had settled to shoulder depth. A huge, sail-like fin broke the surface twenty meters away, and Elva nodded. _Thank you, ebrithilar. _As Vórya snapped up her fill of small fish, Elva strung her hammock as Eragon always did, between two of the larger spikes on her dragon's back. _Good night, partner of my heart and mind. _Vórya hummed, relaxing, and was asleep soon after Elva.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: **

**I'm so sorry! There was no chapter last Sunday because of computer troubles that lasted into this morning. I finally got it fixed and was able to finish this chapter SUPER quick. It's not *super* long, but it's got some important information in it (well, more like important cliffhangers [lol sorry] but whatever). Next week provided my computer doesn't break again, the chapter will be ON TIME! **

Chapter 4

Eragon jumped from his seat as the purple dragon exploded from the recess in the wall, lashing out with claws, tail, and teeth as it gyrated, a cloud of shining danger that moved about the hall with frightening speed. Fírnen and Saphira took after the it, attempting to keep the maddened beast at bay without harming it. Elva had disappeared from sight, and he could no longer sense her with his mind. Angela cried out as a jagged shard stabbed into her shoulder. She collapsed to her knees as blood dripped from the wound. Arya flew to her side, healing Angela's shoulder as she ran. She pulled Angela to her feet, then turned to Eragon.

"We need a shield! The pillars are going to collapse!" She said. As the words left her lips, the purple dragon bellowed a final time before twitching its tail and leaping into the sky. Elva's slight form shimmered and appeared on the dragon's back as its purple wings flapped hard, ascending quickly into the air. The final pillar holding up the massive stone ceiling cracked, and Eragon barked.

"Skölir!" a hazy bubble appeared around the group as the ceiling crumbled, the grinding of the massive stones making Eragon clap his hands to his ears. As the first pebbles hit the barrier, Eragon felt an unprecedented drop in his strength. _Damn. Elva set wards to drain the power of continuing spells. _Abandoning his strategy of blocking the falling rock, he cut the energy to the spell and yelled "Brisingr!". In his mind, he pictured a small ball of flame bursting outward with a pop and shaped the spell accordingly. A ball of blue flame sparked into existence in his cupped hands, growing bigger until he released the spell. A writhing ball of fire and energy burst forth eviscerating Elva's banners, crushing the smaller rocks into a fine sand, ejecting the massive boulders that had formed the ceiling moments before outward. A wave of energy pounded out from the perimeter of the spell, cracking the ground around the group. Eragon stood up from the crouching position he had taken, his head spinning.

_What is Elva playing at? A dragon? She's not a rider! Why did she run away? Where did she run away _to_?_ Eragon scowled as Angela and Arya glanced at each other with concern. He jumped nimbly through the wreckage to the indent in which the purple dragon had been hiding. Saphira followed, the scattered pebbles cracking under her paws.

"Aptr." Eragon muttered. Backward. _Show me what has happened here._ He placed his hand upon the ground and closed his eyes, becoming still as a statue.

"Hmph! Even after all this time, you still seem to have a knack for creating trouble, Eragon." Angela teased. He waved a hand around his head in an irritated gesture, and Angela turned back to Arya, who had been watching Eragon intently, her brilliant green eyes narrowed. "You don't reveal much, my lady." Angela said.

"I've learned to hide much, and to share little. Of what do you wonder?" Arya asked, sensing that a question was dancing on the tip of the dark-haired herbalist's tongue.

"You've forgiven Eragon. Do you still love him?" Angela asked bluntly. "I won't apologize for asking, either. I'm far too old to worry about being tactful."

"I would expect nothing else, my friend. My feelings are...conflicted. I feel I can no longer reach him. He is wounded, by what I know not, but I do know that until he accepts my companionship fully once again I cannot help him."

"Give him time. He has been through more than most." Angela closed her mouth as Eragon stood, his knees cracking.

"Elva is not an enemy now, nor has she ever been. Of that I am certain." Eragon concluded with a relieved sigh. "She brought her dragon, Vórya here many years ago. How Elva came to be her master I cannot tell, but neither she nor the dragon have any evil intent. Only loss and confusion. We must find them, and soon." Eragon turned to Arya, eyes downcast. "I can fight no longer. WIll you accompany me?" Eragon asked, his voice half-pleading, half-hopeful. The young man who had pursued Arya so recklessly appeared for a moment, showing through his battle-weary face.

"Yes. Angela, you have your own matters to attend to in the city, correct?" Arya motioned to Fírnen, and the great emerald dragon lowered his head. A scroll was tied to a spine behind his ear, and this Arya retrieved before handing it to Angela. She took the scroll, pushing it deep into her pack before striking a leisurely pace out of the destroyed building. Eragon watched her leave, not moving until her bouncing curls disappeared around a corner. He returned to the circle of perfect stone left in the wake of his spell, the only piece of architecture not destroyed by the explosion.

"I will find Elva, but we will need food and water. Check the underground rooms, they should still be intact. We need to leave as soon as I find her." Arya nodded and loped catlike to a stairwell, damaged but usable, that led to Elva's underground chambers. Eragon closed his eyes, drawing additional energy from the quickly fading sun, and thrust his thoughts outward across the sea, in search of anything larger than a fish. He found many, sifting through his findings while he continued to search. He found Elva almost immediately, she in the center of the largest collection of creatures for several thousand leagues.

_Arya, grab any weapons you see as well. _He heard a crash below, and felt a brush of Arya's mind as she swore. Eragon chuckled. _Saphira, a hand if you would?_

_A paw, for you, tiny human? I could squash you like a bug with this paw. _Eragon felt a pull on his robe as Saphira lifted him to her towering back with a claw.

_A master of wit, as always. _Fírnen laughed, a throbbing basso rumble that made the mess of pebbles on the floor vibrate, creating a sound like a heavy rain.

_Do you need help, my love? _Eragon asked Arya, cringing internally and hoping that he was on good enough terms with the beautiful elf to say such a thing without being executed.

_I'm doing just fine on my...own. _Another muffled crash sounded, and a moment later Arya sprinted up the stairway and jumped up Fírnen's extended leg. Her full pack swung from her strong shoulders as she climbed the last few feet to her saddle. _Fly!_ She shouted urgently to Fírnen and Saphira. As one, the dragons took flight at the urgent tone in her voice. Before they had reached a thousand feet in altitude, the floor of the palace collapsed, the rocks swirling like a whirlpool to reveal a void beneath. Eragon's bones shook as the beast roared, pulling itself through the hole, ten thousand feet across and still expanding as rock and earth fell into the emptiness.

_Faster! Gánga! _Eragon shouted at the dragons, sending an image of the monster that was even now still rising from the pit. Saphira and Fírnen needed no convincing, they redoubled their pace. Eragon felt an enormous drop in strength and looked around for the magician that must be attacking him. After several moments he realized the terrifying truth. _It's trying to kill us with magic._ Panicked, Eragon cast every protective spell he could think of, using the name of the Ancient Language heedlessly in a desperate attempt to protect himself. One of them evidently worked, and his strength ceased falling. He cast the same series of spells on Arya, who had gone pale and was clinging to her saddle limply, then on the dragons, whose wingbeats had slowed as they labored against the monster's assault. Eragon turned to look at the beast. It was pure white, with massive tusks. Its eyes were feral, glossed over with a silver sheen. Another roar vibrated through Eragon's body as it reared up on its hind legs and loosed a torrent of flame, brighter than the sun. Saphira and Fírnen rolled to avoid the column, tucking their wings as one and dropping beneath it. With the enemy unable to follow, Eragon's curiosity was aroused and, as the inferno passed over their heads he cast a spell. "Brisingr."

His palm burned, the Gëdwey Ingasia shining with the light of a million suns. Saphira roared in protest, and Arya shouted in pain as the brilliance seared their eyes. The white flame of the third beast coalesced and, as Eragon watched through narrowed eyelids, the conflagration stopped and arrowed directly towards him. It seemed to form a lance of fire that gained speed, heading directly at him, a bolt of destruction that would surely kill him. Unable to concoct a spell to stop it, Eragon held out his hand, intending to use his wards to protect Saphira, Arya, and Fírnen.

"Eragon, no!" Screamed Arya as Fírnen, understanding Eragon's intent, veered away to put a safe distance between them. The fire-bolt reached his palm, and the world went black.

_Eragon, please. Come back. _His eyes fluttered and opened to see Arya straddling him, her face inches from his own. Her eyes widened and she drew closer, her lips meeting his. Eragon returned the kiss, then looked down.

"What-" was all he could manage before dropping his head back to the ground, stunned. He stared up at the twinkling stars above him.

"You absorbed the fire, Eragon." Arya threw a concerned look as he grunted.

"I think I'm still on fire." He said, grimacing. "I've been hit by lightning before, but that was nothing compared to this.

"That creature has some sort of wild magic." Arya rose and began rummaging in her pack. She held out a stoppered vial. "Drink this. One of Angela's potions."

"It won't kill me, will it?" Eragon asked sheepishly.

"You already died once today, one more won't-" her voice broke and she turned away.

Eragon stood, groaning as his desiccated skin cracked. The raised ridges left by the burns popped and his vision went black for a few moments and he swayed, unsteady. The faint outlines of trees nearby told him that they had landed, probably on one of the many tiny islands between Illvindr and Elva.

"Arya." He said. She hesitated, turning her head towards his voice almost imperceptibly. "If you would be my companion, I must give you just one thing." His voice wavered and he steeled himself to give away the secret that had flitted about his mind like a disease.

"This thing-I know not what it is, but I know it is not something you would give lightly."

"The dead are not lost." He said abruptly.

Arya whipped about, her hair fanning about her shoulders. "You've-" she began.

"Yes." Eragon said simply.

"Why do you tell me this, Eragon?" Arya's eyebrows furrowed.

_There will come a day, Arya, when all things die. If Eragon does not survive to meet that day, there will be nothing to stop it. The spirits have forseen it, and also that Eragon will die. _Saphira's eyes blinked open, and she extricated herself from the ground. She flapped her wings once, then tucked them back against her body and lumbered into the forest.

"Arya, if I die-and I may, many times before our journey is done. You must bring me back." Eragon pressed his lips together grimly.

"How? Why do you give me this secret now? What are your real intentions, Eragon? I hear and see nothing of you for centuries, and you greet me like this? I thought better of you. I loved you once, but you are not the man I loved any longer. You are far away, inside yourself, and that distance has made you cold. I am ashamed of you." Arya spat.

"Arya, please." His voice cracked, and he lowered himself to his knees. "Hear me out, I will tell you the rest of my story and give you my secrets. Then you may judge me."

"Arucane." Arya cast the spell, sighing heavily, and a small fire popped into being between them. She sat down in the dirt. "Tell me then, O Rider, your story. Leave nothing out, and I will judge you as you wish." Her tone was frigid, mocking, like Elva's had been before the fall. Eragon leaned toward the fire, warming his hands.

"On the island in the sea, in the mountains scarred with black, on blazing summer's final day..." began Eragon.

**We're finally getting to the bit where you lovely readers get some more bits and pieces of what's happened and why everything in Eragon's world is so F*cked up! Aren't you excited? I'm sorry the story is so cryptic so far...mystery! I suppose it'd be less annoying if it was a novelized publication but my apologies all the same :) Stay tuned for more next week! (Also no promises but there might be like...a little romance...soonish. MAYBE. Also 10k words...wooooo...like a fortieth of the way there!**

**=^_^=- Wyrda**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

**This is a flashback chapter, told in the same present tense I have been using. It could get confusing if you don't keep in mind that this was a long time ago. This will be an arc a couple of chapters long, skipping from event to event. The main storyline is on hold for the time being as Eragon explains wth is going on to Arya (wink wink).**

Eragon stood alone in the doorway of the small hut, trembling with rage. A dark shape lifted in the distance, moving away rapidly. Eragon's scowl deepened and he raised his hand, ready to strike his pupil from the air. Grunting, he lowered his hand, unwilling to believe the facts that faced him, unwilling to take the life of of the most skilled magicians he had yet trained, save Elva. He closed his eyes, letting the breeze flow over him, his mid-length hair blowing in the wind. Reaching deep inside himself, he pulled an image of he and Oromis, standing at the crags of Tel'nair, the brilliant sunlight illuminating the scene. In the memory, Eragon stood tall, reciting a scrap of rhyme as an exercise to rid oneself of doubt and clear the mind.

"Eragon!" A dwarf woman called his name and his eyes snapped open. Running towards him, hastily dressed in a white robe was Yensa, his newest Rider-in training. "What-" she began, but Eragon raised one gloved hand to silence her, the scale armor on the palm sparkling with energy as his anger coursed through his body, manifesting itself as magical power.

"Ebrithil, please, tell us what has happened." Crívae stepped silently, gracefully, around the corner of Eragon's simple hut as he spoke, his twisting horns almost scraping the overhanging roof. Eragon studied him for a moment, taken as much by surprise at Crívae's appearance as he had been when the half urgal, half elf had arrived at Fíerdauth. He stood six and a half feet, short for an urgal, but his horns were unlike those of any other of his race. They were curled, like a ram's, and pure white, spiraling behind his head to hang just above his lower back. His horns contrasted brilliantly with his silver hair and chocolate-brown skin, uncovered to the waist where the rider wore a simple pair of trousers. Eragon watched him approach, then lowered his gaze, shaking his head despairingly.

"Rivend has abandoned the order. He wished to know, always, more secrets, more advanced, more dangerous spells. I have refused him, always, but it appears he will no longer accept my denials." Eragon said.

"Then, master, it is just as well you have not taught him those same arts. Is it not?" Yensa's sky blue eyes widened, childlike and disbelieving, at the prospect of a rider abandoning Eragon and Blödgharm's teachings and leaving the order. She frowned, then asked timidly, "What will become of him? Will you imprison him? Or-" she broke off her thought, but Eragon could guess what the carefree, happy-go-lucky dwarf was thinking.

"I will notify the queen that an extraordinarily dangerous renegade is approaching her land, and give her instructions to capture him." Eragon said heavily. He paused, biting his cheek as he contemplated whether to continue. "And Angela will remove his magic." Yensa gasped, horrified. Even Crívae, normally stoic and unperturbed looked disturbed by this revelation.

"But, Ebrithil, will that not destroy his Rider's bond? What will come of his dragon?" Yensa demanded. "It's not fair that he should suffer for Rivend's crimes!" She pouted. The dwarf loved caring for the rider's dragons above all else, and she was one of the few that moved freely from Fíerdauth to Algaësia, ensuring the safety of the hatchlings, eggs, and older wyrms alike. Despite being somewhat weak in combat, she was invaluable member of Eragon's squad.

"That is for you to decide, as caretaker." Eragon responded, not meeting her eyes. "I would prefer no harm come to him, however justice must be passed down, and I am sure the dragon and man alike are not guiltless." Eragon winced, grabbing for stomach as a stabbing pain lanced through him like a Dauthdaert. He recovered his bearing, pressing his tunic to the wound in his torso. "Waíse heill," he murmured, closing the wound easily.

Crívae spoke, gesturing to the inside wall of Eragon's dwelling. "Ebrithil, has Rivend stolen one of the great blades? Naegling is missing." Eragon nodded, his brow still furrowed. A look of anger passed over Crívae's expressive features, his countenance fearsome for a moment before returning to its normally cool and collected state.

"I must go, to notify Hreytha of the impending danger. Crívae, notify the elves of the threat, and Yensa, likewise for the dwarves." Eragon nodded to each of them grimly, then turned inside, pulling the door shut with unwonted venom. He stood for a moment on the dirt floor, considering his next move. Chewing his lip, he moved to the mirror, designed specifically to contact the queen and warn her of dangers and to communicate across the massive distance separating him from the workings of Algaësia. _Draumr kopa_ he thought, and the mirror shimmered, revealing the inside of a plainly decorated chamber. Hreytha glanced up from her work as she noticed Eragon's kneeling image in her mirror.

The queen touched her fingers to her lips, and when Eragon mirrored the movement asked, "What news? More brightsteel? Or has something happened?"

"Rivend. An hour past he revealed his plans to abandon the order, and when I challenged him he attacked me, then fled." Eragon stated bluntly. "He fled Fíerdauth, and I believe he is headed to Algaësia." Hreytha nodded, a troubled look on her face. "My liege, it would be a good idea to call for Elva for protection." The queen stopped, paling.

"Are you sure? She was close to Rivend, she may be allied with him. I will call for her if you insist, however." Eragon chuckled at this.

"If Elva is indeed allied with Rivend, all the races are doomed anyway. Send for her. She will protect you. And Hreytha?" His voice teetered.

"Yes, Eragon?" The queen appeared vulnerable, out of her depth. Despite her impressive diplomatic skills, she did not have the experience and toughness Nasuada had possessed.

"If you have a spare moment, could you ask Elva to contact me?" Hreytha nodded an affirmative, and Eragon cut the energy to his spell, sighing loudly as he stretched his leaden arms above his head.

_Is this what took place before the decimation of Illeria? _Arya's crisp voice cut through his recollection.

_It is, and despite my distance from the carnage I witnessed all sides. I would tell you the things you did not see, if I may._

_I am...interested in the perspective outside my narrow view. How-_Arya began, then seemed to change her mind. _Tell me, how was it that Elva came to be the one to destroy Rivend, when the spellcaster's legion caught up to the oath-breaker first?_

Eragon sighed, rocking back and forth on the balls of his feet, warming his hands.

**Next bit next week! Sorry it's a little short, I've been working on some artwork for Yensa and Crívae. Next week should be a nice, long one though. The second (third?) battle of Illeria. **


End file.
